The biggest stage meets the smallest nation. Curaçao — an island of 158,000, the smallest country ever to reach a World Cup — walked out in Houston against four-time champions Germany, and for twenty-one minutes they dreamed: Livano Comenencia struck to make it 1–1 and write Curaçao's name into the history books with their first-ever World Cup goal.

Then Germany remembered who they were. Nmecha (6'), Schlotterbeck (38'), Havertz (45+5 pen, 88'), Musiala (47'), Brown (68') and Undav (78') turned it into a 7–1 rout. Keeper Eloy Room picked the ball out of his net seven times — a chastening World Cup debut that, remarkably, would become the prologue to one of the tournament's great goalkeeping nights a week later.

Weird & wonderful

The two dugouts framed the tournament's generational split: Curaçao's Dick Advocaat (78, the oldest coach in World Cup history) opposite Germany's Julian Nagelsmann (40) — roughly four decades between them on the touchline.

Germany's 4.08 xG to Curacao's 0.49 mirrors the lopsided 7-1 scoreline, and the shot map tells the same story: 26 shots (12 on target) and 63 touches in the opposition box against just 8 shots and 2 on target. Curacao actually outperformed their xG by converting one of only two shots on target — Livano Comenencia's 21st-minute strike, their first-ever World Cup goal — briefly making it 1-1 despite being heavily outplayed. Germany then ruthlessly converted at a rate above expectation too (7 goals from 4.08 xG), with Havertz's brace and Schlotterbeck's header turning territorial dominance into a rout. The 65-35 possession split and 8-1 corner edge underline that this was control without contest once Nagelsmann's side settled.